Hancock

**PANDAmonium** · 07-01-2008, 08:12 PM

I just watched this movie (Like, a day and a half before the release for most of you). Spoilers ahead (Kind of.)!

The movie starts off much like the way it was marketed through the trailers, but takes a more serious superhero/rehabilitation turn. Because it's an original story, and not a comic-to-movie conversion, there's no established backstory, and thus some of the explanations are less-than-perfect, as far as why Smith's character is the way he is.

However, I really enjoyed it. It was actually better than I expected. My friends were going nuts over the fact that the movie was about a hero who was apathetic all the time, but I had my reservations that a really bored and drunk superhero could make for a whole 90 minutes of good film. Instead, I think it plays very well into a comic-book type of story, especially with the choices made during the climax. One of my friends said the ending was the only bad part of the movie, and I have to agree that the ending kind of leaves you with a "huh?" feeling, but I guess that's to be expected if you compare it to Marvel/DC films, where the stories of the heroes are already established.

I'd suggest watching it, as it's not epic (as in, it's less than 2 hours), and it's a pretty good/different film from everything else this summer (Comedies like Get Smart, Zohan, established superhero movies like Hulk/Ironman, and trippy racers like Speed Racer). It's the kind of movie I'm OK with telling people to wait if the concept doesn't appeal. It'd probably be about the same if you rented it.

Meers007 · 07-02-2008, 06:47 AM

See, there were showings at the theater by my house on the first, and yet I still went to see WALL-E.

**PANDAmonium** · 07-02-2008, 11:35 AM

I hope it was with a hot chick. Who you aren't related to.

Sharingan · 07-02-2008, 03:01 PM

Actually I'm kinda interested in Wall-E too. Not a conventional film by any means, but the fact that almost the entire film has very few words, and everything is communicated almost entirely by actions seems an interesting idea. If you really want to see a "different" kind of film, I would've thought that the cinematic style of Wall-E is way more different than an alcoholic superhero...and most of these Pixar films usually do deliver on some level of entertainment - solid and satisfying stories, some pretty funny comedy that you're ashamed to admit that you like and well-driven character arcs - I will probably watch both, and I think both will be decent, but for different reasons.

Meers007 · 07-03-2008, 01:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PANDAmonium

I hope it was with a hot chick. Who you aren't related to.

Yes it was with a girl that I'm not related to. But I digress.

Going to see Hancock (he he, funny name

) probably today or tomorrow and I really hope it's good.

**PANDAmonium** · 07-04-2008, 09:16 AM

No, you're right. I was making a joke, but in reality I pretty much always enjoy Pixar films.

Except for Cars. I'm not sure what it was about that movie, but it just kind of irked me.

CitizenSnips · 07-04-2008, 03:07 PM

I saw Hancock last night...and I had to say the movie really had me into it until the middle part. Everything was going fine for me until the bizzarre twist (if you've seen the movie you know what I'm talking about). I thought it wasn't a very smart move. The twist comes so suddenly and with practically little to none explanation. The movie picked itself up with the ending a little but still never fully healed for me from the middle part.

Overall, I'll say the movie was decent. Definitley had high expectations for it, but most of my expectations fell short.

**PANDAmonium** · 07-05-2008, 01:29 AM

I got that feeling from other people who watched the movie with me. I feel like maybe this is in part to a lack of an established superhero mythos around the character, which probably made the writer think he had to explain a lot more than was really necessary.

**jepzilla** · 07-06-2008, 01:13 AM

Just saw it, and I liked it. The movie was actually backwards from most superhero movies. A typical superhero movie has the first half for the origin story and the last half for the conflict and climax. In Hancock the last half was the origin story... I think what made the twist so jarring was the foreshadowing was far too subtle, it practically came out of nowhere and was so sudden. And the storm was pointless... The directing let it down a little.

Still I thought it was good, I'd go see it again.

juiCe · 07-06-2008, 03:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jepzilla

I think what made the twist so jarring was the foreshadowing was far too subtle, it practically came out of nowhere and was so sudden.

*SPOLERS****************************************** *****************************

You didn't notice the cumulative minute of Jason Bateman's wife (forgot character names already) sneaking lusty glances at Hancock the whole first half? Something was up, but I didn't think it would be something that would over-ride the plot.

I think that if Charlize Theron's character wasn't a superhero and she still had an affair with Hancock, that would've made a more interesting movie.

BTW: Did anybody think of Arrested Development when Jason Bateman mentioned his wife was dead and when the guy had a hook for a hand? When he got his second hand cut off, I immediately thought of Luke Wilson in Anchorman.